Councillor Keith Humphries, Cabinet member for
Public Health and Public Protection presented a report on a review
of the Major Incident Plan and sought Cabinet approval for the Plan
for onward recommendation for adoption by Council. It was noted
that under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, the Council was
designated as a Category 1 responder and as such, was required to
develop and maintain emergency plans which were appropriate, up to
date and kept in readiness for emergencies.

Cabinet noted that the previous Plan was out
of date, did not reflect the existing council structures and that a
review was required to make the plan fit for purpose. The report set out the details of the consultation
process and listed the key changes to the Plan.

Councillors noted that the Plan provided a
mechanism for mobilising staff and resources in response to an
emergency and for performing council functions in relation to a
wide range of possible scenarios. The
work of and involvement with the Local Resilience Forum was also
explained. Reference was made to the involvement of parishes, but
that not all parishes may be aware of how they could assist in an
emergency situation. It was agreed to circulate information to
parishes on the emergency planning process and how they could be
involved at grass roots level.

The Leader explained that it was hoped to
develop a process to identify large scale events taking place
across the County to ensure that processes the Council used for its
own events were in place to avoid or at least mitigate emergency
situations. It was noted that the
Police in recognition of the Council’s good work in
organising recent high profile and large scale events such as the
Torch Relay and Diamond Jubilee celebrations, were said to want the
Council to take on a more prominent role in events being staged
across the County. This would assist the Council in having a better
informed view of what was taking place in its area.

Resolved:

That
Cabinet:

a)notes the report
presented;

b)approves the revised Major Incident Plan
and recommends its adoption to Council, and

c)agreesthat any
minor amendments to the Plan are delegated to the Corporate
Director for Public Health and Public Protection in consultation
with the appropriate cabinet member.

Reason for Decision

Approval of the Major Incident Plan would
ensure compliance with the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, and allow
subsequent training and exercising on the plan to improve the
Council’s state of readiness and resilience.